Celadon Creations

Out with the old, in with the new

    About two years ago I bought the cutest little purse in "Japan" at Epcot Center.  I have loved this purse.  It's perfect.  One large pocket and two smaller ones.  Very simple and elegant.  But like a child's security blanket taken every where, and cherished always, it has started to show signs of wear.  So, I decided that it was time for a new purse. 

    This little beauty was made using Cherish paper from the Blush line produced by BasicGrey.  I love the little bird and the look upon his face. He sits there, frozen, looking at you as if he is praying that you can't really see him.  That's how I feel most days. 

    Nobody believes me when I tell them that.  Everyone thinks that I am dieing to be the center of attention; I mean with my platinum hair and all.  But I am really shy believe it or not.  It's only when you get to know me, and prove to me that you don't bite that I come out of my shell.  Otherwise, I remain frozen praying you don't really see me.

    Like last year at convention.  I saw him, prayed he did not see me.  The instigator of the bunch made us pose for a picture.  I am blushing so much my face is almost brighter than my shirt and hot pink tips in my hair, and his poor heart was beating so fast I could feel it in my shoulder.  But yet, I could have been content on being left in the corner, just observing, frozen in place, praying he did not see me.

    Enough about me.  Back to the...uh, what was I talking about?...oh, yeah, purse...   

  The paper was adhered with xyron to a round tin by Provo Craft. Then trimmed in two ribbons, one polka-dot, the other argyle.  I also added gems by Hero Arts to the center of the  flowers on the front of the purse.   It took all of about 30 minutes to make.  Totally a fun, flirty purse done in what else but Blush and Cherish!

gettin your feet wet...

Yesterday, Terry of Creative Cuts and I spent our Saturday getting our feet wet, so to speak. Terry took part in her first vendor event at the Parker Spring Into Crafts Fair.  It was a great opportunity to connect with her community as well as gain exposure and make new contacts.  Our next event is this coming Saturday, May 12th at the Lutheran Church of the Holy Saints. The church is located at 6400 S. University Blvd.   Creative Cuts and More is hosting an Open House. 

If you are in the Denver area, stop by and see the new products, make and takes, and tons of project ideas.  I will be teaching a class featuring My Sentiments Exactly Stamps and our new mini-accordion album in a band-aid tin, similar to the one I created last month.  Last Dollar Designs will also be present.  It's sure to be a blast!

The following weekend is the grand opening of Scrapbook Destination.  Friday, Saturday, and Sunday the store will be filled with an array of hustle and bustle with make and takes, demos and crops taking place.  I will be there doing my part for a few hours of each day.  Stop by and say hi, shop and crop!

Sunday, May 20th is the Bras for a Cause event being hosted by Soroptimist of Denver to support Gilda's Club of Denver.  The event is held at Cableland, the official Denver mayoral residence.  The festivities are set to kick off at 1pm. The afternoon includes refreshments, entertainment, and a gallery bra's - decorated centerpieces of delightful auction packages to benefit women's civic organizations - Soroptimist International of Denver and Gilda's Club of Denver. 

Last years event of was a success and quite an entertaining day for all who attended and bid.  You can view a slideshow of last years decorated ceterpieces here: Bras for a Cause 2006 We are hoping to make this years event even bigger and better.  For more information or to purchase tickets please contact Lucinda C. @  303-909-8555. 

This is my first year to actually decorate a bra for the event. I was inspired by a bra from last year which was decorated in fresh flowers.  I loved the idea but thought it was such a shame that they would wither in just a day.  So from their beautiful creation stemmed my idea to turn a bra into a wedding dress. 

The dress is adorned with die-cut Imaginisce Bazzill flowers attached with rhinstone brads to add just the right amount of Bling, Baby!  This was a fun project to do and I hope it helps to bring lots of support to two great orginations who do so much to help support so many women worldwide.

    The other day I was given a new product to play with. 

Glimmer Mist is a new product on the market manufactured by  Tattered Angels.  Glimmer Mist delivers a fine mist of glimmer to your project at the same time adding beautiful color.  To use the product, simply shake the spray bottle to disperse the glimmer pigment throughly.  Aim at your project and lightly spray.  Let dry, or aid in the process by the use of a heat tool and paper towel to blot, and embellish. 

This card was created using three colors of glimmer mist: Snap Dragon, Olive Vine and Ginger Peach.  The Snap Dragon delivers a more subtle glimmer than the other two colors.  The Olive Vine and Ginger Peach both have a gold glimmer which can be very dramatic.  The  difference can be seen in the photo below.

The product can be used on just about any type of porous surface. The Eiffel Tower in this card was created using a die cut from Creative Cuts and More, that I dabbed with a soft green acrylic paint and then misted with the Ginger Peach.   I also created a little wall hanging in the style of one of my favorite artists, William Morris.

To create the plaque I used the flourishes brass stencil from Stampin' Up! that I just masked around and then misted with the Olive Vine.  After creating all the greenery then I masked the image with Miskit, a liquid mask available at the craft store. After the miskit set up, I painted over the entire project with black acrylic paint. Removed the excess paint and mask and added my flower. 

Overall, the product has some promise.  The colors are beautiful and there are plenty to choose from.  Just keep in mind that some have more sheen than others.  It's acid-free and archival safe.  Great for collage type projects. 

There are some drawbacks, however to the product.  It can be messy to work with, so protect your work surface, and wear gloves if you are concerned about your fingers becoming stained.  It will clean up with soap and water for the most part. The manufacture claims that it can be used on fabric and acetate.  It does work well on fibers that are not intended for the wash such as ribbons, and trims for your paper projects.  If stamping on wearables, heat setting may be necessary, other-wise it washes right out. 

I tried using it on acetate, however, unlike a solvent based product, it just beads up on the surface.  If you don't mind a spotted effect and have the patience and time to keep re-applying and drying then this might be for you, but I don't have that kind of time in my schedule.  And the beaded effect is not what I was going for. 

I will continue to use this product, however, I will only be using it on paper and trim for my cards. 

Dead tired and Six feet under

    Wow, has it really been 10 days since I have posted.  Yikes!  I would like to say that it was because I was too busy relaxing on a tropical beach in some remote part of the world, but that would be lying.  Sounds better, but still lying.  Truth is I have been very busy, and have not done much relaxing at all. 

    I have so many things to share with everyone.  I don't know where to start.  So I think I will start with the  most current bit of info and work my way back.  Sound fair? Good.

   

Scrapbook Destination is only 1 month from opening it's doors.  May 18, 19, and 20th is the GRAND OPENING! I met with Mary Kay today to discuss up coming classes and such, and got just a glimpse of all the goodies she has to offer.  I only saw a mere fraction but it is sooooo very cool!  I cannot wait until she has everything in; I'll be the proverbial kid in a candy store! I would love to tell you about everything I saw today, but I'm not going to.  You have got to see it in person.  So if you want to know more then you need to pay her a visit and come catch me and several other very talented artists teaching at Scrapbook Destination located at the intersection of County Line Rd and Holly in the King Sooper's Shopping Center.

    Last night was the "Anything But a Card Swap" for the Mile High Stamper's Group.  The group meets the third Tuesday of every month at the Lutheran Church that is located just 5 blocks north of Arapahoe Road on the east side of University Blvd.  The group consists mainly of current SU! demonstrators, however, there are a few that have retired, and those who are just now thinking about signing on.  No matter how seasoned they might be, they all are a bunch of talented ladies.  This is just a small fraction of the group from last years convention:

    The idea behind last night's swap was to get hostess type gifts or non-card type projects in everyone's hot little hands.  This is generally are biggest swap of the year.  And everyone works really hard on it.  I wish I took a picture of the progress of preparing for this swap - the huge mound of red backing, tissue paper, scraps, and one stamper dead on her feet. When all was said and done I felt like the victim of my own swap.

    I know it's not Halloween, and I should be thinking about spring, flowers and the upcoming Mother's Day.  However, I was compelled to use this exclusive coffin box die from Creative Cuts & More.  Not only is it exclusive, but I personally designed the die.  So, you see I could not wait for fall to roll around to show off my latest experiment, I mean creation. 

    And speaking of waiting, looks like that is what we will be doing for a few things around here.  Due to the plumbing issues at my house, the Creative Cuts & More open house has been post-poned.  We tentatively have rescheduled it for Sat. May 12th.  So I apologize if you had made plans to attend this weekend, however, the only thing happening here this weekend is work on my shower.

    Turns out the pipes are just old and are starting to decompose.  So out with the old and in with the new.  I will post pictures of the progress as it is made.  Not that you come here to see plumbing issues being resolved, but more for me.  I want to see how long it takes them to fix it.  They are not really sure how they are going to be able to do that yet, so we will see.  They said a week tops.  Well it took two weeks and three companies to even get a probable diagnosis.  And at this moment the only thing they have accomplished is removing the tile floor to determine that there is no basin under the tile.  I just sit back and laugh and think "Oh, the joy's of renting!" Thank you to everyone for your concern. I do appreciate it.

    I have more to share with you, but it will have to Wait until another night, as this girl is dead tired. Okay, okay. I'll stop with the puns.   

 

We now return you to....

Your regularly scheduled blog...kinda. Normally I would be telling you about my latest find.  But not today.  I do have a latest find, but I have not finished playing with it yet.  So when I am done playing with it, I will share it with you.  (I have this image of my kids right now. Wonder why? )

Right now, I am going to share a list of up-coming events: (email me for more info)

April 17 - Mile Hi Demo Meeting - Anything but a Card Swap - 6:30 - 9:30 in Denver

April 21 - Creative Cuts and More Open House from 10 to 4 in Aurora.

May 5 - Jump into Spring Craft Fair and Open Market from 9 to 4 in Parker.

May 18- 20 - Grand Opening of  Your Scrapbook Destination in Highlands Ranch.

May 20 - Bra's for a Cause to Support Soroptimist and Gilda's House in Denver. (As seen on Channel 9)

June 9 - Creative Cuts and More Open House from 10 to 4 in Monument.

More dates to be announced soon. 

I hope that if you are in the area you will stop by and say hi.  Bring a friend and do a little shopping. 

Tomorrow, I will be posting a new technique. So be sure to check back. 

Happy Stamping till then.
Dusty

We now interupt....

...your regularly scheduled program for this important message.   Isn't that how the emergency broadcast system starts out?  You know the annoying buy oh-so necessary alarm that comes on just when your favorite song is on.  Well, wouldn't you know it, just as I was getting into the swing of things, I had my own annoying but oh-so necessary interruption take place.  Not a world ending emergency, just a very wet and gross one.  The pipes in the house I am renting are not functioning well at the moment and are in need of a complete restructuring.  Like I said, annoying and necessary. 

I will return you to your regular scheduled programming, I mean blogging, this weekend.  Sorry for the delay.

Dusty.

OH MY FLIPPIN GOODNESS!

Oh, my flippin goodness, do I want this!  I don't know what practical use it really has, but I think it is the cutest thing ever! Don't you agree?  I am not an artsy type of girl, but this is a must have.  It just screams funky and yet so very chic.  That is just my style.

Not only is this little card the cutest thing ever but it comes with a pin too!

  How cute is that! I know you are saying this too.  Don't be shy. You can admit it.  O.k. so maybe fairy dogs with wings is not for everyone, but how about a queen who is most definitely in charge of the matter?

This is the perfect gift for the control freak in all of us.

It definitely says, I have arrived. I actually know several people who are all in their own rights very deserving of such a beauty.  I do mean this in the best way of course.  Those women who know how to control a room, or command a situation.  That friend who is always right, and you love her for it.  The daughter or mother who keeps the family in check with her righteousness. Or even yourself for those days when you just feel the need to cop an attitude.  Not a bad hair day, in fact just the opposite.

And what better way to establish your place in society than with your very own crown jewels?

I know, I know, you are asking yourself what this has to do with card making, scrapbooking, or just being crafty in general, well, nothing, really. Otherthan being created by someone who is very artsy and has an eye for clever and cute.  The pins are very nicely done and the ATC upon which they are packaged is very eye catching.  So kudo to Carte de Bijoux by F. G. & Co.. I for one will be drooling all the way to the poor house. Thank you very much.  Indeed.

Shaken things up a bit...

This week has been an extremely busy week for me.  On Tuesday, I demonstrated the new shaker kit from Creative Cuts and More to the ladies at the Mile Hight Stampers meeting.  About 45 women attended and made the card.  You can see the card I did as a make and take on my splitcoast gallery. 

This shaker kit is not only a new product but one that is sure to change many minds about the ease of shaker kits.  Follow along as I walk you through a tutorial on Creative Cuts and More's new shaker kits. 

Shaker Kit Supplies:

* 2 -1/2" card stock square
* Foam Shaker Frame
* Straight Frame
* Acetate Square
* Tape Frame




Basic Step by Step Assembly Instructions:

Step 1:

Begin with the 2-1/2" card stock square.  You will place your background image upon this.  For the purpose of this tutorial, I am using an image from Lunagirl.com.  After creating the background for your shaker kit, you will take the foam shaker frame and remove one of the paper backing from the frame, this will expose the adhesive upon this side of the frame. Note both sides have adhesive upon them.

Then place the foam shaker frame on top of the 2-1/2" card stock square.

Step 2:

Now you can fill your frame with the desired shaker items.  Due to the fact that the shaker frame is a solid construction of foam there are no seams at the corners to leak the contents of your shaker!  This is what makes this product so wonderful.  You can use the finest of fillers and rest assured that with each shake they will remain in the shaker, not on the floor.  For this tutorial, I have used a mixture of seed beads and micro beads.

Step 3:

Next you will very carefully remove the remaining paper liner from the foam shaker frame. Hold the card stock firmly in place while removing the paper liner as to avoid popping the contents of your shaker on to the adhesive of the foam shaker frame.

Then place the acetate square on top of the foam shaker frame. 

Step 4:

Next you will take the tape frame and remove one of the paper liners. 

Then place the tape frame on top of the acetate square already upon the shaker kit; and remove the remaining paper liner.

Step 5:

Now you will finish off the shaker kit with the straight frame, however note that the straight frame is larger than the previously used pieces in the kit.  So for best placement, I recommend placing the straight frame face down upon your work surface.  Then placing the built shaker kit face down and centered on to the straight frame.  Be sure to leave an even border to achieve the best look.

Step 6:

Your shaker kit is now complete.  The size of the shaker allows it to be used on many different projects; on every thing from cards to boxes and bags.  You really are only limited by your imagination. 

Here is the shaker kit on a finished card.  For more ideas be sure to check out my gallery at Splitcoast Stampers, or the idea gallery at Creative Cuts and More.

For this card I used, shaker kit with Elegant Eggplant, image of peacock from Lunagirl.com, and papers from SU! and DCWV. Beads are from a local craft store.

Thank you all for commenting on previous posts.  I am glad to see such support for what I am creating and my tutorials.  Remember to keep those comments and subscriptions coming.  You just never know when another dose of generosity will strike me. 

The winner of the Band-aide Tin and accompanying goodies is: dragonflydreams@*****. Congratulations on winning.  I hope that you enjoy your candy. 

* All information contained with in this tutorial is copyright protected by the author, Dusty Patrick, and may not be reproduced with out written or expressed permission by the author.

** The shaker kit is a new product licensed to Creative Cuts and More.  Currently you need to call 303-840-1744 to order this product, containing 1 mat ranging in size from 2-1/2" to 3" to 3-1/4", 1 foam shaker frame, 1 acetate square, 1 tape frame, and 1 straight frame.  New product is always coming on-line so be sure to ask what else they have that you may not have seen on the web. 

The goose that laid the golden egg

I wanted to show the cards I have been working on lately using the new shaker kit from Creative Cuts and More, but I can't. The batteries have died in my camera, and seeing as it is now almost 1 am I think I best wait till tomorrow to go get some.  But I will post them on Thursday.  I show-cased these cards and the new shaker card kit at the Mile High Stampers meeting tonight and it was a huge success. Everyone really seemed to like the ease and convience of it all.  I will explain more on Thursday when I do a tutorial on the new shaker kit. 

In the mean time, I will show you a cute and easy Easter basket.  This basket is the basket with handle from Creative Cuts and More.  There is a picture of it on my Splitcoast gallery where I used the handle that accompanies the basket, but in this sample I only used the basket in acetate to display, what else but a golden egg.

The egg is nestled upon a pink carnation inside of the acetate basket.  The basket was stamped with Jet Black StazOn, then colored on the reverse side using Purple and Yellow StazOn.  These two colors were applied with a cotton swab, but you could just as easily use sharpies to achieve the same effect. The stamps used are Flower Garden and Artifacts by Stampin' Up!. The basket since being done in acetate uses no adhesive but brads to hold it together.  This is a very quick and easy project.  Too bad  the kind folks over at Creative Cuts don't sell golden eggs too. 

Good things do come in small packages

A recent assingment of mine was to create something using the band-aide tins being offered by Creative Cuts and More.  These things are so small and yet so cute.  I have seen these used for so many things: travel games, relationship fixes, holiday stress relievers, etc... I stared at my tin for a long time before finally deciding on this:

A birthday tin!

I used rub-ons to create the entire collection.  The rub-ons are new from All My Memories.  I like the few that I have seen in the series.  This particular one is the Birthday Girl set.  To make this ensemble which includes the tin, the gift card envelope, and the accordian card, I used all but one of the rub-ons. 

I found that the "Happy Birthday" rub-on fit perfectly in the middle four pleats of the accordian.  I was very happy about this, but I found that the rub-ons were a little stiff. They did not come off of the transfer sheet very easily.  So a fair amount of pressure and rubbing was need .  While I love the designs of their new designs, I don't think I will get to many more of these, as I can see if they are not used right away where they will become brittle. 

So in review, I love the band-aid tin, and the accompaning ensemble but not the rub-ons used.  I have found other rub-ons to be easier to use and be just as cute. 

I also wanted to say thank you to everyone who has commented and suscribed to my blog.  I am flattered to say the least.  So I am doing a little blog candy early for March.  It's my way of saying thank you.  One lucky person will be drawn from those who have suscribed and/or commented on my blog by the end of this week. The lucky winner will receive a band-aide tin, gift card envelope,  accordian card, *bling blossoms, and one spool of light pink gingham ribbon.  Thanks again for looking and letting me know your thoughts.

*Bling Blossom:

There are two large and two medium sized blossoms in the package as well as four cicular gems, all of which are self adhesive.